Residents Less Than 5 Years Can Get ''NOR'' Status

1 Persons who have been in Singapore for less than five years can qualify for Not Ordinarily Resident (NOR) tax status under transition rules. The NOR scheme offers tax benefits to newly arrived residents for five years. Those who are already in Singapore can now enjoy NOR benefits for the remainder of their five-year period.

2 The NOR Scheme was announced during the 2002 Budget Statement. It adds to Singapore as an attractive hub for companies to locate their executives.

3 The transition rules allow individuals who relocate to Singapore in the last 5 years to also benefit from the NOR Scheme. For example, someone who has been a Singapore tax resident since YA2001, and was a non-resident before that, will be eligible for NOR benefits from YA2003 to YA 2005.

4 The transition rules also allow a person who is not a tax resident in YA2003 to qualify for NOR benefits for 5 years beginning from YA2004 if he becomes a Singapore tax resident that year. This means that expatriates and returning Singaporeans need only have one year of non-residency before being eligible for NOR benefits.

5 Once an individual's NOR status expires, he will have to be a non-tax resident for at least 3 consecutive years before he can qualify for the NOR benefits again. As an example, someone who qualifies for the NOR benefits from YA2003-2007 will be able to qualify for the NOR benefits again no earlier than YA2011, and only if he has not been a Singapore tax resident for YA2008-YA2010.

6 The IRAS has released details of the NOR scheme, the transition rules and the income tax incentives available to qualifying individuals. Details of the NOR scheme are available at the following web-sites.

IRAS web-site : www.iras.gov.sg

MOF web-site : www.mof.gov.sg

MINISTRY OF FINANCE